Treasury to fast-track major infrastructure projects

Major infrastructure projects including Crossrail and the Olympics could be fast-tracked following a Treasury announcement that it would relax fiscal rules.

In an effort to head off the worst of the recession, Chancellor Alistair Darling said the government would seek to boost the economy with targeted spending on infrastructure.

A Treasury spokesman said: “There is not going to be any new money but we are going to have to be imaginative.

“Nothing in the pre-budget report has been decided but the key thing is going to be innovation – bringing forward spending.”

Projects likely to be boosted include the construction of two aircraft carriers and the replacement of the Trident nuclear deterrent.

Medical buildings, social housing and leisure centres might also be built faster to boost the construction sector, according to the Guardian report.